Staple wire cutting device for printing press stitching apparatus



Jan. 23, 1962 M. UcK ETAL 3,017,634

' STAPLE WIRE cu ING DEVICE FOR PRINTING v PRESS STITCHING APPARATUS Filed March 24, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENT'OKSl mcH HAUCK NART wa ER 8 m g A QG Jan. 23, I962 M. HAUCK ETAL 3, 7,

STAPLE WIRE CUTTING DEVICE FOR PRINTING PRESS STITCHING APPARATUS Filed March 24, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS: Michael Hoijck BY Mfll'fin Wieser Maxwell E.Sporrow ATTORNEY.

3,017,634- STAPLE WIRE CUT'lllNG DEVICE FOR PRKNTENG PRESS STllTCl-llNG APPARATU Michael Haiick and Martin Wieser, Augsburg, Germany, assignors to Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nurnberg A.G., Augsburg, Germany Filed Mar. 24, 1959, Ser. No. 801,506 Claims priority, application Germany Apr. 19, 1%58 2 Claims. (Cl. 1--7)) This invention relates to staple wire cutting devices in general and more specifically to improvements in wire cutting devices in stitching apparatus of rotar y printing press folders.

Staple wire cutting devices are known having a knife which is attached to the stationary stitcher horn, which knife is operated periodically by means of a cam located on the rotating stitching. cylinder over several links and levers. However, this kind of mechanism only can be used in low speed presses. At high speed the knife has the tendency to spring back due to the elastic action of the links wd levers, and thus cause jamming of the wire. Efforts have been made to overcome this disadvantage by using stronger springs in the train of the mechanism. However, the increase of pressure on the links and levers caused by the stronger springs results in a greater wear of the moving parts, and consequently the safety of operation is diminished.

Still other devices of this kind use a pivotally suspended bar shaped knife which is operated by a rotating cam attached to the stitching cylinder. With such devices the cutting always occurs at the same spot of the knife resulting in a rapid wear of the knife.

It is intended by the present invention to improve the cutting device in a stitching cylinder for rotary printing press folding apparatus in order to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages.

Objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part hereafter and in part will be obvious herefrorn or may be learned by practicing the invention, the same being realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention consists in such novel features, arrangements and combinations of parts as may be shown and described in connection with the apparatus herein disclosed by way of example only and as illustrative of a preferred embodiment.

It is an object of the present invention to have the wire cutting device arranged in the cam operated plunger of the staple driving device in the stitching cylinder.

Another object of the invention is to use a circular knife in the cutting device.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide for a device which is efficient in operation, simple and economical, which can be manufactured easily and precisely and which operates at high speed of modern printing presses with a high degree of safety of operation.

Various further and more specific objects, features and advantages will clearly appear from the detailed description given below taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which form part of this specification and illustrate by way of example one embodiment of the device of the invention.

In the following description and in the claims, parts will be identified by specific names for convenience, but such names are intended to 'be as generic in their application to similar parts as the art will permit. Like reference characters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing, wherein FIG. 1 is a View showing part of a cross-section of the fire collecting and stitching cylinders, broken away, with the device of the invention embodied therein;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line l'I--II of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the stationary horn partly broken away and the top of the stitching cylinder carrying the extensible driver;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view on an enlarged scale of a driver and the shaft and lever actuating said driver;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional partial view showing the driver carrying the cutting wheel with its spaced noses in engagement with the stationary horn and fonning the U-shaped staple.

Referring now in more detail to the drawings illustratin g a preferred embodiment of which the invention may be realized, there is disclosed in FIG. 1 a staple wire 11 which is pulled by the feeding rollers 12 and 13, and which is induced through the cutting nozzle 14 into the gap 1''] which is located between the stationary stitcher horn 15 and the rotating stitching cylinder 16. The wire 11 is guided by a groove 18 in the stitcher horn 15 and is held in place by an elastic spring blade 19 which is fastened to the stitcher horn 15. A cross-bar 20 is mounted on a flat portion 21 of the stitching cylinder 16, said cross-bar having a plurality of rectangular holes 22, spaced apart, in which staple drivers 23 are movably arranged. These drivers 23 are operated in forward position under pressure of helical springs 26 which are located in bushings 27 seated in bores 28 of stitching cylinder 16. Levers 24 which are linked to drivers 23 by gun slides 25 are mounted on a shaft 29 which is rocked by another mechanism (not shown in the drawings) attached to the frame of the folder of the printing press.

In the heads 3t) of staple drivers 23 are arranged circular stapling Wire cutting knives 31 which are freely rotatably mounted on short shafts 32 located in said heads 30.

The operation of the mechanism is as follows:

The staple wires 11 are fed through the cutting nozzle 14 by the feeding rollers 12 and is into the gap 17 where they are held in place in the grooves 18 by the elastic spring blades 19 just before the rotating stitching cylinder 16 has reached the position shown in FIG. 1. The plungers 23 are now in outermost position, the circular knives 31 immediately cut the wires ill on the cutting edge of the cutting nozzles 14 when the cylinder 16 continues its rotation. The protruding noses 33 of the plungers 23 now will form the bent staple ends in cooperation with the stitcher horn 15 and will carry the staples along said horn 15 towards the collecting cylinder 34 where the collected signatures coming from the printing press then are stapled in the conventional manner.

The simple design of the stitching device according to the invention permits a safe operation at high press speed. it also is obvious that the knives 31 always will cut the wire at a different spot on the knifes edge, because they can rotate freely about their shafts 32, which operation results in a considerable longer life of said knives. It also lends itself to the use of knives made entirely out of hard and wear-resistant carbides because of the simple shape of the knife.

While the invention has been described and illustrated with respect to a certain embodiment as a preferred example which gives satisfactory results, it will be understood by those skilled in the art after understanding the invention, that various other changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and it is intended therefore in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications.

What we claim is:

1. In a printing press folding apparatus having a rotary stitching cylinder and a stationary stitching horn overlying said cylinder, means for feeding wire to form staples onto the under face of said horn, a radially movable staple forming plunger mounted on the periphery of said cylinder, said plunger having spaced projections for bending said wire, a circular knife loosely rotatable in one of said projections for cutting a length of wire to be formed into a staple, means on said horn for guiding said wire and cooperating with said knife for cutting said wire, and additional means on said horn for holding said wire after being out and cooperating with said projections for forming a staple.

2. In a printing press folding apparatus, the combination according to claim 1, said knife having a diameter substantial-1y corresponding to the length of a leg of the formed staple.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

